This specification relates to technologies used to measure straightness of linear stock material, e.g., of pipe or tube stock and round bar stock materials.
There are several reasons to keep the end pipe straightness below certain tolerance value. For many applications, such as transport, this is done to facilitate pipe joining during pipe fabrication. For pipes that will be threaded, having straightness deviations that are outside of the prescribed tolerances can lead to threaded pipe ends that are out of spec, which can result in discharge of at least portions of these pipes. Mill operators can conduct visual inspections or manual measurements or both to determine whether straightness of portions of the linear stock material being fabricated by a pipe mill falls within the prescribed tolerances.